Walter and Leonore Annenberg Pavilion to Open Early 2010

The new Walter and Leonore Annenberg Pavilion is the twelfth largest construction project in the State of California, and is being built based on the stringent standards of the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development. It will meet or exceed all California requirements for seismic safety. Eisenhower Medical Center will open the new facility in January 2010.

Construction on Eisenhower’s state-of-the-art Annenberg Pavilion is proceeding on schedule according to updates from the building team. Earlier this year, the foundation was poured and the steel structure erected. In July, the final connecting beam was put in place, connecting the new inpatient pavilion to the existing hospital. Since then, interior work has begun, starting with the first floor, and drywall and wall finishes are underway on all floors.

On the exterior, the concrete panels on the north side of the building are 80 percent complete, and the windows are nearing completion. In November, the massive air-handling units, which will distribute heating and cooling to the building, were placed on the rooftop by a large crane. The Eisenhower Central Plant is also receiving an additional cooling tower, chiller, and generator to support the utility needs of the Pavilion.

Eisenhower broke ground for the Walter and Leonore Annenberg Pavilion in 2007, and at the same time launched Campaign Eisenhower, the hospital’s capital campaign. The first level of the new Annenberg Pavilion will house 34 beds in critical care units (Intensive Care, Coronary Care, Cardiac Surgical), while the lower level will house the hospital cafeteria, Information Systems, Environmental Services, Nutritional Services and the Materials Management departments.

The second, third and fourth levels will contain patient rooms fully equipped with state-of-the-art monitoring capabilities and medication dispensing technologies. The second floor will also house a critical care area with a 12-bed Intensive Care Unit dedicated to Eisenhower Neuroscience Institute patients.

The new Pavilion is named for Walter and Leonore Annenberg, one of the most prominent and generous couples in America. The late Walter Annenberg was an Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s. He was a founding trustee of Eisenhower Medical Center and Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Mrs. Annenberg served as United States Chief of Protocol with the rank of Ambassador under President Reagan. She is president and chairman of the Annenberg Foundation. The Annenbergs have been strong supporters of Eisenhower Medical Center since its inception, and the Annenberg Foundation has donated more than $100 million to Campaign Eisenhower.

For more information on Campaign Eisenhower, please visit www.emc.org or call 760-773-1888.